Hey guys! So this isn't a ranting post at all. I knew it was going to happen after seeing the damage my roof decal did to my paint. I just haven't had the time to get it taken care of, but hopefully next week they'll be able to squeeze me in to have my roof repainted since I'll actually be able to do something about it then.
SO. Here's my roof as of today:

Yuck, right? Well.

I'm now stuck with a bit of a dilemma! I don't know WHAT color I should repaint my dear Basil's roof. I've always loved the idea of a two-tone MINI, but I can't seem to decide if he looks better as a solid, or if his roof should be painted black. So I came here with hopes of some suggestions!

Here's what he looks like in full glory:


I am thinking about getting some black headlights. He also has tinted tail lights.

SO, in your opinion, do you think Basil would look better with a black roof, or should I keep him all blue? Should I paint his mirrors as well?

Love you guys! Any thoughts are helpful. I just can't make up my mind.

 

Personally, I love my black roof/mirrors, but you don't see solid painted MINI's often. I'd keep it.

 

and if only the clear is damaged, a good body shop should be able to salvage the pain and just sand/reclear it. Making that the cheaper option as well.

 

even cheaper option would be to plasti-dip it, I could be wrong but I thought the paint on minis was 2k and that they don't have clear coat?

 

I'm getting a professional estimate to see how much it's going to cost from my local dealer's body shop. He was guessing around $700. I'd rather get it done the right way than just cover up an existing problem. But if my roof WASN'T damaged, I'd consider getting it plasti-dipped!

InjectedGT, I'd love it if that was the case. I don't know if the blackish bluish bubbles are part of the clear coat or have soaked through it, but if they could just reclear it I'd be sooo excited!

Thanks for the feedback too.

 

new vinyl is an option had mine done for $200 and it has a sun roof, which is a pain.... my opinion a black roof and keep the mirror cap blue...

 

Yeah I would also do the vinyl option to. Way cheaper! And Id do the black roof with black mirrors.

 

In order to vinyl that hood, you'd have to sand it down and prep it first. Any blemishes like that will definitely either show through the vinyl, or create an air pocket later on. I absolutely NEVER recommend using vinyl as an option to cover up blemishes - especially that large of a blemish. No good. I'd get it fixed the right way, and just paint it. Really love the solid color as well!

 

It's only a '09, how could you neglect it that much that the coat was eaten that badly?

 

I would poo-poo the people who installed the vinyl or those who made it rather the car's owner ( unless he used ungodly harsh chemical to remove it or glue residue). How are you to condition paint when it's sitting UNDER vinyl?

 

I take very good care of my car. The decal that was installed when I took delivery of the car was apparently installed improperly (or at least had the wrong type of vinyl installed??? I'm not sure.) and I didn't find out until I went to remove it recently. The paint was long gone by then.

I didn't use any chemicals at all to remove the decal itself, but I used WD-40 to remove the residue.

I'm getting the roof repainted as soon as my schedule lines up to do so.

 

Also, for anyone curious, this is what happened to my roof decal after one day of sitting out in 110+ degree weather, and ultimately, damaged the paint of my car.

 

With your other black accents I'd do for a black roof for sure. Keep the mirror caps same color and keep the chrome belt line to have some separation. My opinion of course.

 

I second this!

 

So I'm still toying with the idea, and liking the idea of painting the roof black - if I did, however, should I paint my spoiler to match?
This thought occurred to me a few weeks ago and I'm not sure if I should. It might be a little more costly if I were to go that route. Hmm.

 

I own a body shop, but I don't work there. I do know a lot about it and if the clearcoat is peeling you have to sand it off. PROBLEM is the basecoat wil be damaged also. You will need to put a new basecoat before the clearcoat.If your car is waterborne paint you want to go to a paint shop that uses that. Ask what type of clear he uses. There are expensive UV protection and CHEAP clearcoats. Just my opinion since I see a lot of this and have never seen one re-cleared without new base that looks good.